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Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Yeah, to add to the last two posts, it's even harder for me to try and work with the preparation/Xs and Os/in-game adjustments aspects when I have to constantly see all the sideline histrionics - pacing, exhorting, facial gestures, and on and on. I don't begrudge the guy his passion and intensity. But I can't help but think it's an attempt to overcome the strategic shortcomings by hoping to simply will the team to win. Just deflates my expectations for elite success even more.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

I'm trying to remember, how long has Crean been coach? I know he was ther for Geezer Jr's freshman or sophomore year because we have a photo of Jr sitting with Crean in the stands at an IU football game. Jr didnt have much time for going to games after his sophomore year.

Anyway, isn't the honeymoon about over?

IU is 63-18 under Crean since the 2011-12 season. He isn't going anywhere unless the wheels fall off and we miss the tourney a couple of years in a row.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

yep and i think those numbers will continue to get worse. crean has certain flaws such as stubbornly refusing to ever try a zone himself even when other teams do it against us to great success and under him, i think the next screen i see the Hoosiers do will be the first.
ryan understands perfectly well that crean relies on transition points and if you stop that and force iu to play half court- they are like a fish out of water.
but at least it showed iu how far they have to go now that they finally played a big time team.
when he first came here, i understood the necessity of playing div.2 and other small schools because our talent wasn't any better than theirs.
however, the scheduling hasn't changed at all since he got here. we still stack the deck with a dozen or so games at home about ever 2-3 days against these types of schools. sure it is an easy way to pad the record but you just don't learn much if anything as to where you really stand and it doesn't force the players to understand what it takes to play against the top teams.
i get a strong feeling that if it weren't for the big10 acc matches, we would have scheduled another cupcake at the hall instead.

The schedule isn't bad- UCONN and Syracuse are two top 10 teams this year so far and IU played both of them away from home. No other Big Ten team has played two teams of such caliber. We aren't struggling to beat crap schools at home unlike Purdue- if it wasn't for Siena would they even have any wins?

Yes, the second half against Syracuse was bad but the Orange are arguably the best team in the country and the UCONN game was there for the taking. If they can beat Notre Dame IU will likely go into Big Ten season 11-2.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

I'm not counting on him being fired, but saw a post on another site that said they may be using him to land some additional recruits before letting him go/demoting him after said recruits are in the fold (some recruits are enrolling early). He left his last two jobs, LSU and New Mexico, on nearly identical dates: Dec. 17, 2008 and Dec. 18, 2010. So, there's that. I wish they would have just canned him already, though. He deserved it.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Don't get me wrong HoosierGuy, I like Crean. But his record means zilch if he doesn't produce tourney wins. Actually I made that post while dreaming up ways for Brad Stevens to continue losing for 2 more years in Boston and then take the IU job. It was a day-dreamin' kind of day when I wrote that.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Don't get me wrong HoosierGuy, I like Crean. But his record means zilch if he doesn't produce tourney wins. Actually I made that post while dreaming up ways for Brad Stevens to continue losing for 2 more years in Boston and then take the IU job. It was a day-dreamin' kind of day when I wrote that.

I wouldn't object to that scenario but Stevens is too good of a coach to fail at any level so he won't be available.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Don't get me wrong HoosierGuy, I like Crean. But his record means zilch if he doesn't produce tourney wins. Actually I made that post while dreaming up ways for Brad Stevens to continue losing for 2 more years in Boston and then take the IU job. It was a day-dreamin' kind of day when I wrote that.

The question might be-
Does Brad Stevens see the NBA as the pinnacle of his career and now he's there, or is it just something on a checklist to prove to himself he can do it? Moreover, regardless of W/L at Boston, would the IU job be a job he would covet down the road if it was open?

Crean can sell ice to Eskimos and seems to run a clean program, but he's not going to win many chess matches. He got the program back to relevancy but he's not going to keep it there long playing cupcakes and getting outcoached in the big games (read: tournament).

The IU Nation will continue to grow restless. So SOMEBODY is going to be offered the IU basketball HC position sooner rather than later IMHO. I'm not talking next week, next summer, or even next year. But I have my doubts about 3-5 years out.

Nuntius was right for a while. I was wrong for a while. But ultimately I was right and Frank Vogel has been let go.

------

"A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, thatís teamwork."

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Don't get me wrong HoosierGuy, I like Crean. But his record means zilch if he doesn't produce tourney wins. Actually I made that post while dreaming up ways for Brad Stevens to continue losing for 2 more years in Boston and then take the IU job. It was a day-dreamin' kind of day when I wrote that.

Do you realize how hard it is to win in the tournament? I am just a bystander I have no allegiance it is ridiculous to blame Crean for not winning more in the Tourney. There is so much luck involved. It is about who gets hot. IU just had an off night last year. Sadly it happens winning 6 games in a row is nearly impossible only one team does it.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Do you realize how hard it is to win in the tournament? I am just a bystander I have no allegiance it is ridiculous to blame Crean for not winning more in the Tourney. There is so much luck involved. It is about who gets hot. IU just had an off night last year. Sadly it happens winning 6 games in a row is nearly impossible only one team does it.

Which is why I sorta kinda hate the tournament. I love it, it's fun and exciting as hell, but the winner isn't usually actually the best team. I mean, at least make the championship a best of 3.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Do you realize how hard it is to win in the tournament? I am just a bystander I have no allegiance it is ridiculous to blame Crean for not winning more in the Tourney. There is so much luck involved. It is about who gets hot. IU just had an off night last year. Sadly it happens winning 6 games in a row is nearly impossible only one team does it.

Having a "championship or bust" standard is obviously expecting too much, but it's disappointing when you have 2 of the top 4 picks and don't even make the Elite 8.

Over the course of time, ALL of the great coaches have had solid consistent tournament success: Calipari, Williams, Izzo, Pitino, Self, Calhoon, etc. There might be some single years here and there that are disappointments, but the good coaches at top notch programs generally take their teams far in the tournament. They might not do it every year, but over the course of time they show a general pattern for consistent deep tournament runs.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Which is why I sorta kinda hate the tournament. I love it, it's fun and exciting as hell, but the winner isn't usually actually the best team. I mean, at least make the championship a best of 3.

The best team won the last two years, and most of the time it ends in the best team or one of the best teams winning. There are always 8 or 10 seeds who make a deep run, but at the end of the tournament the team who wins is usually the one who has the best talent, best coaching, or best regular season.

But there are always teams who could have gone far who were knocked out early because of a match-up. VCU from last year is probably the best example. They were a great team last year, but Michigan was probably their biggest kryptonite with Trey Burke. VCU could have been a Final Four team but was knocked out in the round of 32.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Anyway to the game at hand, today will go a long way to telling us where we are. ND isn't great but they are probably a tourney team, if we are going to be a top 25 team this year we should win by around 10

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Can we just scrap the Crossroads Classic? If IU and Purdue are never going to play each other I don't see the point in having it. Not to mention IU always plays like **** in it. We had an ugly win against Notre Dame two years ago and lost to Butler last year. Crean's teams hit a wall every year in mid-December; we're seeing it again today.

Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

Can we just scrap the Crossroads Classic? If IU and Purdue are never going to play each other I don't see the point in having it. Not to mention IU always plays like **** in it. We had an ugly win against Notre Dame two years ago and lost to Butler last year. Crean's teams hit a wall every year in mid-December; we're seeing it again today.

they already play each other in the big10 season. at least once sometimes twice.